Releasing mechanism for automatic vending machines



.Nov. 10, 1931. s. WISTOFT 1,831,217

RELEASING MECHANISM FOR AUTOMATIC VENDING MACHINES Filed June 24, 1929 fi 9 n7 iv/W 0 Patented Nov. 10, 1931 SbREN WISTOF'I, OF FREDERIKSTBERG, DENMARK RELEASING MECHANISM FOR AUTOMATIC VENDING MACHINES- Application filed June 24, 1929. Serial No. 373,354.

The invention relates to a releasing mechanism for automatic vending machines, which can distinguish between coins with flange and coins without flange and are of the type I which with this object in View have a pair of feelers with beaks turned towards one another, between which the coins inserted into the automatic machine will fall down.

The releasing mechanism in questionis eslflsentially characterized in this thatthe said feelers are formed of flat springs secured outside to the side walls ofya coin passage, the

lower end of which springs are bent towards one another and are situated beneath the 1 said coin passage and form the feelerbeaks,

and in this that beneath, but a little aside of the opening between these beaks there is arranged a stop member against which a coin inserted into the machine will strike and which has the effect that the. coin, if it has no flange, rolls so that it falls down at the one side of a partition tobe. thereafter in a suitable manner led out of the machine. whereas the coin. if it has a flange, rolls and moves thus. guided both by the beaks of the feelers gripping inside of the flange and by the said-stop member. that it efl'ects an opening of the feelers (bending of these in a direction from one another) whereupon it falls ,down' along the other side of. the said partition to thereafter in theusual manner release the locking the machine. I y

In the accompanying drawings i j p 1 1 v I 1 is the part of the said releasing mechanism, necessary for the comprehension of the invention, in front elevation and Fig. 2 the same seen from the left side in Fig. 1.

Through a usual, not shown coin chute the coin inserted into the machine rolls down and into a coin passage 2. Th1s is located between a pair of stationary plates 3 the upper 2. On the arm 6 there is pivotally suspended of the opening member of Y 1 "up from its-normal position, as shown in the plates are otherwise vertical. At the sides (to the right and the left, Fig. v1-) the coin passage 2 is limited by the inner edge of sheet inetal strips 1 and 5, which are fixed between the plates 3. The sheet metal strip 1 tothe ;?5?) left (Fig. 1) has below an inwardly extending lug .11.. This strip, the inner. edge of which from the said lug upwards is vertical along the greater partof. the length ofthe strip and then extends obliquely-to the left, does not reach quite down into line with the lower edgeof the plates 3. The strip5 vto the right consists at its inner edge essentially of two vertical portionsd and i? with an intermediate horizontal shoulder 4 which'isso determined that the distance from thevertical inside edge of the strip 1 to the portion dot the inneredge of the strip 5 -is equal to or almost equal to the distance from the end of thelug 11 of the former strip to the 'portion 4:? of the strip 5,1 and equal to or almost equal to the vertical distance between the shoulder 4 and the upper edgeof the lug 11. By'this means the coin passage 2'is "1 shaped. The strip 5 reaches down a distance-below the lower edge of the plates 3, and its lower end is angle-shaped in such a manner that it here forms an arm 6 which extendsunder a part of the lower opening of the coin passage a pawl 7 having in cross section the shapeilike an inverted U, so that it can be readily turned drawings which the pawl'will again assume due'to its gravity when it'is no more under an action for turning it into the said direction. The lower edges of the pawl are surfaces 8 which extend obliquely upwards ina direction towards the free end of the pawl.

9 are the two aforementioned flat'springs, forming the coin feelers of the mechanism, and which. are each fitted opposite one another to the outside of the plates 3. Each spring 9 is at its upper end fixed to the respective plate-3 by means of a screw 10 from which the spring extends vertically downwards and normally bears against the outer side of the plate 3. The lower portions of r the spring 9 are curved inwardly towards one another, there being provided small outcuts 14 in the bottoms of the plates 3 for the said portions to pass through, and the side edges of the curved portion of each spring are thus convergent in a direction towards the lower end of the spring so that the latter will terminate in an almost pointed beak 12.

VVh en the springs (feelers) 9 are in their normalposition, thebeaks 12 arebeneath the coin passage 2 at a short distance from-same, and are located at :adi-stance from one another substantially equal to the thickness of a coin, for which the machine-isintended, within its flange. The outer end of the pawl 7 is a little to the side of the opening between the beaks 12, and it may here be mentioned that 'the'upper surface of the pawl "has a quite slight inclinein a direction towards'the common vertical mean plane of'the "springs (feelers) '9. The free length of these and "therewith their'stiflness may be adjusted by means of adjusting arms '15., one such arm for each spring 9. The adjust ng-arm 150f a spring 9 isarranged as a single-armed lever on a screw '16 which is screwed into the *resp'ectiveplate 3, and on tightening this screw he arm 15 may be causedto bearagainst'the spring'9 at some 'place'lower than the'screw 10 by means of which "the upper end of the springis fixed tothe-said plate.

13 is a stationary'partition arranged at a suitable place in the machine casing.

The operation is as follows:

Whether a coin with flange or-a coin without flange after insertion into the machine falls from the coin 'chute down into the coin passage 2, it will owing to the above mentioned form of the latter strike against the it falls f'urtherdown between thefee'ler be'aks 12, so that the coin will always reach these beaks a't comparatively small velocity.

Let it be firs't assumed that :a coin for which the machine is intended (a coin with flange) is inserted. During its massage through the coin passage 2 the coin will with its flange strike against the feeler hereby bend the feelers :(rth'e springs) '9 so far in :a direction :away from one another, that the flan-ge of the com can pass between the beaks 12, so that these will (grip the coin within the flange. Almost simultaneously :the coin willstrilceza-gainst :the pawl .7, whereby its downward movement will be arrested. but the coin will now move to the'left (Fig.

centre oi gravity of the coin will he obliquely below to the left of the place where the the opposite sideofthe partition, as 'andfor -the purposeset forth. beaks 12. :By .i'ts lnnetic energy the'coin Wlll beaks 12 grip the coin close within the flange of the same, and the consequence there of will be that the coin will now .suddenly move under the action of its gravity downwards with the inner edges of its flange sliding on the said beaks and Will simultaneously therewith swing counter-clockwise, during which swinging movement the coin will be acting from below against the oblique under edges 8 of the pawl 7, turn the pawl clockwise. Thereby the coin will with a certain kinetic-energy strike against the two beaks 12in; the momentits centre of gravity is vertically'beneath the space between the beaks.

.By this action the feelers (springs) 9 will be bent so far that they will release the coin, which latter mlliiall downvertically, whereby it is caused to fall down to the right of the wall l3, whence-it Jnay in any suitable way be guided on to release the locking of .the qpening'member ofthe machine. As soon as the coinfhas fallemthepawl .7 willidue to its gravity swing back into its normal position.

Ifinstead of a'coin withflange, a'coin'without flange is inserted "into ithe 'machine, such ;a coin will after having struck against the pawl '7 roll to the left on the same without being'aflecte d "bythe beaks 12. .The coin will .in'thismanner rolhdirect ly oil "the pawl in the Q65 Qtinguish betweemflanged and flangeless coins introduced into the chute, comprisinga pair of -feelers (consisting of flat springs having their upper ends fixed to the opposite sides 'o'fthe chute, said feelers having upon their lower ends'bea'ks directed towards each other, a partition below the beaks, a stop member disposed below the beaks "and in offset rela- "tion with respect t here'to, said stop member andbeaks'cooperating todirec't a flange'd coin tonne s'ide 'o'f the'partition, said stop memher also serving todi'rect a flangeless coin to,

"2. ik-dev i'c'e as 'claimed'in claim 1 wherein the stop member is in the nature of a pawl swingable upwardly under the, influence of,

a flanged coin which when rolling on the 1 pawl "and "guided by the -beaks will assume a position unsupported 'by the pawl and will by 'gravity move downwardly and swingin a direction toward the pawl. a

'3. A device as claimed in'claim 1 wherein the stop member is of inverted U-shape in cross section and is pivotally connected, the under edge of "the stop having an oblique surface "on which acoin with a flange acts during-swinging oi the stop member.

SOREN WISTO-FT. 

